Why You Should Lie In Business

29 Apr Why You Should Lie In Business

“Let’s take advantage of being away and go out for breakfast…”  My friend and I are currently away at an industry workshop and considering we are both sans child, we decided to start our day with breakfast in the sun.  Picture this: spectacular Autumn day on the the Gold Coast…  Not a cloud in the sky, cool breeze but warm and toasty in the sun.  We found a restaurant in the hip suburb of Broadbeach and settled in to enjoy our bacon and eggs and coffee. And that we did! It was delicious (and the conversation even better)! But when it came time to leave, we both left in shock.

“Can we split the bill?” I asked when it came time to pay.
“Um, no.  I don’t have time at the moment.”  Was the reply.

And this, is why sometimes it’s ok to lie in business!  My friend and I were shocked!  We couldn’t believe that such a reputable place could give such an answer.  Even if he was too busy to take the extra time to split the bill, it was still the wrong thing to tell us.  “Sorry, but unfortunately our system can’t do that”  or even “Sorry, it’s against restaurant policy” would have been better than “I don’t have time”!

Your customers should NEVER feel like you don’t have time for them, (even if it’s true). Telling the truth is ingrained in us from a really young age and I’m not saying that it’s not important to do but sometimes, just sometimes, it’s more important to make someone feel good.  I have a five year old so I’m very aware of teaching the habit of telling the truth but I also teach her that telling someone that their shirt is ugly (even if it’s the truth) will only hurt that person’s feelings and therefore just is not necessary.  It’s the same in business.  If telling the truth is not going to a) make the person happy or b) solve part of a bigger problem then perhaps it’s not the right time. Perhaps, for the sake of not offending someone, it’s ok to lie in business.